acting characters
arrivals thought they were being cold-shouldered for poor time-
keeping; jokers thought I’d found their jokes offensive; speakers
had thought they were boring me. I ask them to identify what I’d
been doing differently: they tell me I was being aggressive, or
emotional, or unemotional. I ask them not to try to interpret my
feelings, but to identify what I had actually been doing differ-
ently: what was I doing physically, that was different from my
normal behaviour?
With questioning and encouragement, the students begin to
identify that my physical behaviour had been temporarily altered.
Where I would normally have sat at the same level as the group,
this time I had stayed standing. I would normally have moved my
eye contact around the group, but this time I’d either stared
fixedly at an individual, or had looked away entirely. I would
normally have fidgeted a bit – this time I’d kept very still. These,
and other subtle changes in my physical behaviour, had unsettled
them, and had altered the whole ‘feel’ of our relationship.
In status terms, I had taken on all the characteristics of high
physical status. I’d been physically relaxed, but tall; I’d kept my
hands on my hips, keeping myself open and so claiming a larger-
than-normal physical space; I’d used dominant eye contact, but
had offered no supporting behaviour (I didn’t nod and smile to
encourage speakers to continue). At one or two points I’d moved
right up close to individual students, invading their personal space.
You can guess pretty well what signs I would have exhibited if
I had been using very low-status physical behaviour. Physical
conduct matters hugely in human interaction. In Section Three
– The Body – we’ll explore this in much more detail. As to exer-
cises, the exploration of physical status is, of course, exploration
of body language. The detailed exercises in the next Section will
allow you to put these ideas on physical status into practice.
When you pull together the three types of status which a
person uses – social, verbal and physical – you’ll have a pretty
sophisticated understanding of that person, and of your feelings
towards them. As part of your acting planning, it can be useful
to represent your status relationship with another character as a
36
planning to act
sort of a snapshot. And the ‘seesaw’ image is a particularly strong
yet simple one to use. In the bottom-right section of the
Character Profile Sheet, you’ll see the title ‘Status’. Follow the
guidelines in the section in the Appendix to show a key status
relationship with another character.
Example: Natasha from Three Sisters
When you’re filling in the ‘seesaw’ section of a Character Profile
Sheet, you’re effectively drawing together your sense of your
character’s overall status – social, verbal and physical – in rela-
tion to another key character. Masha makes a useful seesaw
partner for Natasha, partly because Masha seems pretty out-
spoken in her criticism of her brother’s wife. When you pull
together the facts, the things Natasha has heard Masha say, and
the snapshot we have of Natasha’s personality, it seems likely
that Natasha will feel herself strongly inferior to the sophisti-
cated, outspoken Masha. The fact that Natasha is in charge of
the running of the house in which Masha lives, becomes, there-
fore, an interesting complication.
Tool No. 3: Power Matters
The possession of power gives us confidence in dealing with
other people. It brings with it status, and gives us something defi-
nite to negotiate with in everyday life.
Playwrights and actors understand about power, but their know-
ledge is usually instinctive rather than researched. Power is at the
very heart of storytelling. King Lear’s tragedy is that of a man who
gives away power to people who want more, and who in the end
take it all from him. The plays of Harold Pinter and Arthur Miller
often play explicitly with power, and its uses and abuses, for their
central conflicts. But what is power, and how can you define it?
Within business training, managers are often taught about
power in all its glory, thanks to the work of researchers such as
John R P French Jr and Bertram Raven. In a section of D Cart-
37
acting characters
wright & A Zander’s Group Dynamics: Research and Theory
(Tavistock Publications, 1968) they describe several separately
identifiable types of power. For me these boil down to:
1) Agreed power – power which a person is allowed to use as a
result of their position within a culture (e.g. a manager can
ask a junior member of a team to carry out a duty; a police
officer is allowed to arrest a suspect; a parent can stop a
child’s pocket money as a punishment).
2) Abuse power – power which a person uses to force another
person to do something (e.g. a school bully threatens
another child unless dinner money is handed over). Abuse
power is also used when a person with Agreed power
abuses their authority (e.g. a doctor inappropriately asks a
patient to strip).
3) Reward power – the power to supply something which is
valued by another person (e.g. an interviewer rewards a
candidate with a job; a parent rewards a child with a sweet;
a child rewards a parent with a smile).
4) Knowledge power – power which comes from having infor-
mation or expertise which is needed by someone else (e.g.
a homeless person knows the location of the nearest taxi
rank; a technician is able to repair a computer problem).
5) Connection power – power which comes from being close to
someone who has power (e.g. a school pupil is the daughter
of the headmaster; you have a friend who is a famous film
actor).
6) Personal power – power which comes from a person’s attrac-
tiveness to others, because of their looks or their personality
(e.g. a model; a member of a group who can tell jokes
brilliantly).
Here’s an example of power at work. In this scenario I’ve
marked, with the appropriate numbers, which power types are
being used at each point in the story.There’s a least one example
of each type of power.
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planning to act
A park keeper sees a homeless male youth sleeping on a
park bench in a city centre. The park keeper wakes the
youth and orders him to move on (1): the youth gets up
and shuffles away. The youth meets a pretty (6) female
tourist, an off-duty policewoman, who asks him the way
to the cathedral; they chat, and he gives precise instruc-
tions (4). As they part, the woman offers the youth some
loose change (3): he takes it. The park keeper has been
watching. As the woman starts to leave he goes over to
the youth and demands the money, threatening to report
him for begging (2). The youth calls out to the woman (5),
and she returns and intervenes, showing her warrant card
(1). The park keeper leaves quickly.
A person’s power, then, derives from a variety of sources. Job,
family role, education, skills developed (including for a hobby),
personality, social class – all provide your character with aspects of
power which gives them potential influence over others. Films,
plays and television comedies are quite often built around a central
misunderstanding regarding power: Nickolai Gogol’s The Govern-
ment Inspector (1836) stands as a shining example, a play in which
a simple misunderstanding – the belief that a new arrival in town is
an all-important government inspector, when in fact he’s nothing
of the sort – leads to a catalogue of incidents and accidents which
reveal the darker side of town life. A whole episode of the classicTV
comedy Fawlty Towers revolves around the mistaken belief that a
customer is a top restaurant critic. But perhaps the best movie
exploration of mistaken power takes place in the film Being There.
An ageing and mentally subnormal gardener (Peter Sellers), thrust
blinking into the modern world after the death of his employer, is
run over and then nursed by a wealthy friend of the US President.
His social shyness, and his randomly spoken advice on how to
help plants grow, leads his all-powerful new friends to adopt him
as a brilliant business guru who speaks in metaphors.
Willy Russell’s Blood Brothers also takes an overt look at power
– specifically, how access to power gives people advantages in
39
acting characters
life. Russell starts with a scenario in which twins from a poor
background are separated at birth. While one twin, Mickey,
remains with his mother, a cleaner, the other, Edward, is adopted
into a wealthy home (where their mother has been working as
their cleaner). We follow the twins’ dramatic changes in fortune
as they grow up, coming together infrequently, as they do, so that
we (and they) can see the widening gulf between them.
Power issues are often most significant when you are on the
receiving end of someone’s else’s power, and Willy Russell offers
many examples of how society can favour those who are already
advantaged in some way, whether it be within the fields of educa-
tion, employment, health or social confidence. An early incident
in Act One stands as an example of how someone with Agreed
power uses it selectively – edging towards Abuse power in the
first instance, and even offering the power to Reward, in the
form of advice from someone who knows, in the second. Both
twins have been caught red-handed on the point of committing
a petty crime. To Mickey’s mother he barks:
Well, there’ll be no more bloody warnings from now on.
Either you keep them in order, Missis, or it’ll be the courts
for you, or worse, won’t it?
To Edward’s adoptive mother he says:
An’ er, as I say, it was more of a prank really, Mrs. Lyons.
I’d just dock his pocket money if I was you. (Laughs) But
one thing I would say, if y’don’t mind me sayin’, is, well,
I’m not sure I’d let him mix with the likes of them in the
future. Make sure he keeps with his own kind, Mrs. Lyons.
Russell uses the narrative of his musical play to argue persua-
sively that if we use our various powers to treat people in radi-
cally different ways – praising one while chastising the other,
favouring one while disadvantaging the other, and so on – then we
are, each of us, complicit in influencing the way people turn out.
40
planning to act
Acting tips
Once you’re aware of the importance of different types of power,
you can start to use that knowledge to sharpen your sensitivity
onstage. As part of the planning stage of acting, you should
comb through your script to work out which types of power your
character possesses. You can list these for quick reference in the
Power section of your Character Profile Sheet.
For an actor, awareness of power can really help to clarify why
your character behaves the way he does, and why others allow
him to do so. It can also help you to avoid stereotyping. A char-
acter with low social status, such as a prostitute, may have an
abundance of certain power types: Personal (being good-
looking); knowledge (of street life, and clients’ names); Connec-
tion (with their pimp, and with important clients); Abuse
(threatening to reveal clients’ names); and Reward (use your
imagination!). Likewise, a character with apparent high social
status – the ceremonial mayor of a town, for example – may in
truth have very little influence over others.
Exercises: Solo
1) Draw up a list of powers which you personally possess. Be
imaginative! – if you’re unemployed you are still likely to
have the Agreed power to demand payment of benefit
within a certain time period. Come up with at least one
example, per power category, of occasions on which you’ve
exercised each of these powers over someone else.
2) Think of someone you know well, who doesn’t strike you as
being particularly powerful. List the six power types. Now
try to come up with at least one example per power ‘cate-
gory’. (A person’s expert knowledge of Star Wars figures
might not impress you personally, but …)
3) Select from a published play a monologue which requires
you to speak to an onstage character. Comb through the
speech for moments at which your character seems to be
using a specific type of power to influence the other person.
Identify the power ‘type’ being used in each case.
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acting characters
Exercises: Partnered
1) Choose a frozen moment from an imaginary scene in which
two power ‘types’ have momentarily come together in con-
flict. For example, a parent is about to use Abuse power to
strike a child, while the child is trying to deflect punish-
ment with Personal power via a friendly pleading expres-
sion; or, a headteacher is trying to use Agreed power to
refuse admission to the child of a ‘pushy’ parent, who is
offering to write a cheque for school funds. Don’t plan the
scene, but on a cue unfreeze the action and see what hap-
pens. Try removing one of the power bases (e.g. the parent
has no spare funds) and see what happens this time. Then
try adding some new power to one of the characters.
2) Similar to 3) in the solo exercises above. Select a duologue
from a published play. Comb through the scene for moments
at which each character seems to be using a specific type of
power to influence the other; identify the power ‘type’ being
used in each case. Run the scene with a keen awareness of
what powers are being used.
3) As above, but this time discuss with your partner some sort
of shift in power – e.g. if A previously found B very attrac-
tive (i.e. B has Personal power), this time B is considered
less attractive. Or (taking the imaginary example from 1)
above), a parent wanting to use Abuse power against his
child is wheelchair-bound. Re-run the scene and discuss
how the dynamics have changed, even though the scripted
lines remain the same.
Example: Natasha from Three Sisters
Chekhov has endowed Natasha with a fascinatingly comprehen-
sive range of powers, which, when lined up alongside the powers
of Andrei and his sisters, should suggest to us why his play is less
a drama of inaction (a common criticism of Three Sisters), and
more a drama of what powerful people suffer when they find
themselves restrained by society, and by their own personalities.
Natasha is accorded considerable Agreed power through her
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planning to act
marriage to Andrei – over the servants, for example, and to a
lesser degree over her sisters-in-law. She feels justified in sliding
over into Abuse power when she loses her temper, at both ser-
vants and sisters. She enjoys her Reward power over both Andrei
and the children, indulging the latter with comfort (including
Irina’s room) and attention. As a member of the household she
no doubt collects valuable Knowledge power over those around
her, but her particular expertise seems to derive from her role as
a mother (something only she among the four women enjoys).
Her Connection power to Andrei, and by association to the
sisters, brings her status within the local community. And her
beauty is a source of Personal power over both Andrei, and later,
over Protopopov (no doubt among others). So someone who
seems at first reading to be something of an outsider and a
victim, starts to seem altogether more interesting.
43
section 3: the body
In this Section we will be concentrating on how actors, and
indeed people in everyday life, use their bodies to communicate
things to others. You will be introduced to five new Tools which
allow you to change the way in which you express yourself
through your body.
Actors use their knowledge of non-verbal communication to
ensure that accurate and appropriate messages reach their
audience. When you are onstage or on screen, you should be at
least partly aware of how your body is communicating things, so
that you can make adjustments if your communication is
somehow ‘wrong’. This Section gives you the knowledge you
need to achieve such awareness. Actors also use knowledge of
physical behaviour to widen their ‘range’ – i.e. to play a wider
cross-section of character types. The five new Tools in this
Section will help you, too, become more versatile.
Tool Number 4 – Adjusting Tension – explores how muscle
tension reflects a character’s psychological state. Tool Number
5 – Adjusting Height – considers why people alter their height
above and below their normal ‘standing’ height. Tool Number 6
– Adjusting Openness – examines how, by covering or exposing
their chest and stomach, a person can reveal their thoughts and
feelings. Tool Number 7 – Working on Eye Contact – explores the
meanings behind differing levels and durations of eye contact.
And Tool Number 8 – Adjusting Space – assesses the way in
which we handle physical space when we are with others.
44
the body
As in the previous Section, you will be given examples, acting
tips and exercises to allow you to develop your ability to change
your physical behaviour in performance.
At the risk of stating the obvious, no-one can actually hear your
thoughts. They’re yours, and if you choose to keep them private,
you can. People can (and will) guess at what is going on in your
mind, but they’re only guessing.
Some years ago, a police recruitment poster boasted that offi-
cers were trained to spot when a suspect was lying: the suspect
would rub his nose when speaking. I imagine that one or two
suspects went to court for having an itchy nose.
Of course, there are physical signs which even some of our
greatest actors can’t fake. Sweating, turning pale, going dry in
the mouth – these require real psychological stimulus. Beyond
these signs, we are as a species pretty good at throwing others off
the scent – generally by controlling our animal impulses for fight
or flight.
However, you can often get a sense of what is really going on
in someone’s mind. The secret is to keep an eye on what they
can’t control so well. Broadly speaking, the further away from
the face you go, the more revealing the clues are likely to be. A
twitch of a finger or foot can say something really important
about the mood of person (experts call a sign such as a twitch,
‘leakage’). These, and other aspects of the behaviour of the
human animal (you could call him the ‘humanimal’), have been
comprehensively and fascinatingly explored by experts such as
zoologist Desmond Morris (see Further Reading).
For the actor who wants to be really versatile – who wants to
portray the widest possible range of different types of human
behaviour – what does he need to know? What are the key ‘vari-
ables’ in the body, that alter according to someone’s personality?
There are five – or, at least, four plus a joker in the pack. The
variables are Tension, Height, Openness, Space (or rather use of
space) and Eye contact; together they form the mnemonic
THOSE. Space is the joker, as you’ll see.
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acting characters
Tool No. 4: Adjusting Tension
Tension occurs when you contract muscles: they tighten. Often
this is for some necessary reason: you want to pick up an object,
to move forwards, or simply to avoid falling over. Just standing
still demands some muscle tension. Frequently, though, we use
muscles without any such necessary reason. As a result of some
psychological stimulus, we become ‘tense’.
One stereotype of a very tense person is a regimental sergeant-
major in the army. In charge of a gang of undisciplined young
conscripts, he must knock them into shape in time for inspection
by a senior officer. At stake is the reputation both of the regi-
ment, and of the sergeant-major as a disciplinarian. He stands
ramrod-straight in front of his new charges.
One of the new recruits represents the sergeant-major’s big-
gest challenge, and is his opposite in terms of physical tension. A
hippy, used to resting and sleeping when and where he feels like
it, he is at ease with the world and sees no need to waste energy
on pointless drilling. His favourite position is flat on his back,
marijuana joint in hand, contemplating the cosmos. The stage is
set for conflict ...
Extreme opposites are, then, easy to recognise; but tension in
people normally takes more subtle forms. Among the guests at a
showbiz party are two people facing one another. The first, a
man, is standing and, although he has no need to move, his body
is tense: his brow is knitted, he has slightly lifted shoulders, his
stomach is tight, fists and buttocks partially clenched, kneecaps
pulled upwards, even his toes are clawed inside his shoes. The
woman he speaks to is standing too, but she uses pretty well only
the muscles she needs. There’s some tension in her face – she is
smiling at the man as he talks – but otherwise her body has only
enough tension to allow her to stand, and to hold her drink.
In the animal world, tension acts as a state of readiness for
‘fight or flight’. The need to be ready to stay and fight, or to
suddenly flee, is most common in animals which are lower down
the food chain – the hunted. Birds and mice are good examples,
and they have a metabolism to match: racing heartbeat, sudden,
46
the body
twitchy movements, always on the lookout for trouble. Conversely,
the creatures which can relax the most are the ones which are
hunted least: the hunters.Think of lions basking in the sun.They
feel no threat, so need not be on constant lookout; they use
tension only when needed and with economy, perhaps when
sauntering to the lake for a drink. Even when hunting at full
speed, much of the lion’s body is untensed.
In human animals, mental state is likely to be the biggest
factor in determining how tense, or how relaxed, a person is.
Confidence develops, or fails to develop, partly in response to life
experiences; and of course the degree of confidence you feel
changes according to circumstances. Think of the couple at the
party. Let’s add a few facts to help explain the difference in phys-
ical tension in each of our two subjects.
The man is an actor fresh out of drama school. He considers
himself a fairly shy person with strangers, though he knows he
can be totally extrovert with his friends. He really only came to
the party because an actor-friend said that some influential
people might be there. He doesn’t want to be thought of as
lacking ambition, but right now he feels out of place and would
much sooner slip off home.
The woman he is speaking to is a television casting director.
Successful in her work, she prides herself on being friendly and
approachable, despite the power she exerts in her job. She is a
skilled questioner, and has decided to find out more about this
man. She is confident, in control, and happy to be doing what
she is doing. The man, though, is suffering a conflict: his animal
instincts are telling him to retreat, but his mind is telling him he
must stay and be sociable with this woman. Result: he is tense,
she is relaxed.
Of course it’s not quite that straightforward. Though she’s not
aware of it, the woman has some unnecessary tension in her jaw,
and in her right foot. She is finding conversation with the man
hard work, and has picked up on his unease. As she listens, she
is also mentally scripting her polite exit from this situation.
47
acting characters
Acting tips
Tension is the enemy of effective performance: it strangles vocal
resonance, and inhibits physical spontaneity. Before you can use
tension effectively as an actor, you need to be able to relax at the
drop of a hat. A painter needs a blank canvas for his work; he
creates from there. A fully relaxed body is the actor’s blank
canvas; he creates from that.
The actor in performance should use added tension with care.
The voice is especially susceptible to damage from tension, so try
to avoid, even when playing a very tense character, centering
your character’s stress in the throat or neck.There are other ways
to reveal mental unease, for example through slight tensing of
more visible parts of the body such as your fingers and feet, or
through other means such as vocal changes (the note of the voice
may be higher than usual, for example). Of course with practice
and training you shouldn’t need to be thinking about such things
in performance; but while you’re still developing control over
your body ‘signs’, such awareness is valuable.
Exercises: Solo
1) Practise relaxing your body as fully as you can, lying flat on
the floor. Tense and then relax each set of muscles in your
body, starting with the toes and working through to your
face. Try to breathe normally as you tense and relax. You
might find it useful to learn or record the words in the
Appendix as mentioned earlier, ‘Relaxation Exercise with
Visualisation’.
2) Practise relaxing your body as fully as you can, standing.
3) Select a specific point in your body. Tense that point, and
move around with that point still tensed. Make a mental
note of how the tensing of that point affects you. Add one
or two other points of tension, and note how your brain
starts to engage with your bodily stress: your mind is
looking to justify the stress in a rational way, perhaps by
suggesting a reason for being uncomfortable.
4) Observe people’s points of tension at any social gathering.
48
the body
Notice unnecessary tension in people’s bodies, and ask
yourself what might motivate it. Try imitating their tension.
Be imaginative!
Exercises: Partnered
1) Using a scale of one to ten, you and your partner should
each choose a level of confidence in social situations: ten is
high, five medium, one is low. Create a ‘back story’ to sup-
port your feelings. Enter a set situation when ready, main-
taining an appropriate degree of tension. Stay aware of your
tension in the scene, but behave as truthfully as you can.
2) Two people are talking. One (a tense person) wants to get
away; the other (a relaxed person) is happy to stay talking.
The tense person in fact seems relaxed, but subtly ‘leaks’
tension, e.g. nodding more than necessary, rubbing fingers
together, smiling fixedly. Choose a location, and two char-
acters – and decide why the first one is tense, and the other
relaxed. Again, stay aware of your tension in the scene, but
behave as truthfully as you can.
Example: Natasha from Three Sisters
Read and rehearse the scene below from Act One, in which we
first meet Natasha. Pay close attention to how the psychological
pressure she experiences as a result of being ‘on show’, and of
having made a ‘wrong’ choice of what to wear, might show itself
through hidden tension:
[Enter NATALIA IVANOVNA; she wears a pink dress and a green
sash.]
NATASHA
They’re already at lunch ... I’m late ... [Examines herself in the
mirror, composes herself ] I think my hair’s not too bad ... [Sees
IRINA] Dear Irina Sergeyevna, congratulations! [Kisses her
firmly] You’ve so many guests, I’m really embarrassed ...
How do you do, Baron!
49
acting characters
OLGA [Enters from dining-room]
And here’s Natasha. How are you, dear!
[They embrace.]
NATASHA
Happy Name Day to Irina! I feel awfully shy, there’s so many
people here.
OLGA
It’s just our friends. [Alarmed, in an undertone] You’re wearing
a green sash! My dear, you shouldn’t!
NATASHA
Is it bad luck?
OLGA
No, it simply doesn’t match ... and it looks odd.
NATASHA [In a tearful voice]
Really? But it isn’t really green, it’s more – neutral.
[Goes into dining-room with OLGA.]
Tool No. 5: Adjusting Height
We all achieve a natural height in adulthood. This of course is
something we cannot control, being set as it is by things such as
genes and nutrition. But whatever height you happen to be, you
alter it on a moment-by-moment basis. Often the changes in
height are subtle, but they can be big and decisive. At times your
decision to change height will be driven by a need for comfort,
such as straightening your spine when sat at a keyboard for a
long time. But you will also often raise or lower your body
beyond what is strictly necessary. Why?
50
the body
People alter their height in order to claim a particular position
on the status ‘seesaw’. Picture the following stereotypical scene
in a ‘posh’ restaurant:
A young man, a first-time diner in this sort of establish-
ment, has brought his girlfriend here, partly to impress her.
He wants to seem confident and in control, but he now
feels out of his depth: he’s not sure of the rules of etiquette
and he fears looking foolish. He’s being attended to by a
waiter who privately disapproves of the young man and his
‘type’: at first glance the waiter could tell that the diner is
in unfamiliar surroundings – he is slightly hunched, as if he
doesn’t want to be noticed. The waiter likes to reflect the
status and reputation of the restaurant, so he holds
himself in a raised but relaxed posture, with his head
tipped back very slightly. When he first speaks to the young
diner, the waiter’s posture leaves the diner with the distinct
impression that the waiter is ‘talking down his nose’ at
him, despite the apparently friendly tone of the waiter’s
voice.
In the animal world, changes in height take place for solid prac-
tical reasons which have everything to do with survival. The
hunter finds a position of height from which to seek prey; think
of an eagle wheeling high above oblivious creatures on the
ground. The hunted also use increased height at times to scour
the horizon for threats – think of a meerkat at full stretch. Both
hunter and hunted also lower their height for practical reasons:
picture a cat stalking a bird, the cat’s whole body is kept low in
order to be unseen. Picture too the reaction of a squirrel when it
hears something threatening: it drops in height and freezes.
‘Humanimals’ – people – tend to alter their height in company.
This often occurs when a person’s job requires them to think
about how they influence others. A police detective may remain
standing when aggressively interrogating a suspect who is seated,
in order to press for a confession; a counsellor working with a
51
acting characters
child may sit on the floor to seem less threatening, and so
encourage the child to speak.
People also alter their height in relation to others in social
situations. A high-status player in the company of someone who
is seated normally may sit on the arm of a chair; they prefer to
‘look down on’ others. A low-status player will tend to reduce
their relative height – they prefer to ‘look up to’ others. Within a
group of friends, there will usually be someone who prefers the
floor or a beanbag to a place on the sofa.
Sometimes people claim height (and so higher status) as a
way of masking their own lack of confidence: they feel more in
control, if they are higher up than the other person. Think back
to the restaurant scene. This time the waiter’s intention is to
make the young man feel relaxed and welcome. Meanwhile the
young man wants to be more convincingly at ease. The waiter
retains his formal body height, which he feels is respectful to the
diner – he is after all ‘on duty’. He does not however tilt his
head upwards, but keeps it level and relaxed. The young man
avoids slouching and instead holds a more upright posture. But
in truth he is sitting a little too upright to seem relaxed and
comfortable.
My local pizza restaurant – part of a national chain – experi-
mented recently with the height ‘issue’ in relation to customers.
Waiting staff would make a point of sitting down at the table with
you to take your order. It was an interesting tactic: for me it felt
more informal, more friendly, a discussion rather than a formal
interaction. It did, though, require the waiter to enter your
‘personal space’ – your table – not something people are used to
in restaurants. And not all waiting staff managed the ‘friendly’ bit
well. After about a month the policy was quietly dropped.
Acting tips
As with tension, height in performance is something which needs
to be handled sensibly. If you stretch yourself too high, or if you
compress yourself too much, you will be adding tension which
may harm your performance, especially your vocal performance.
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The ‘extremes’ of use of height in performance are probably
best reserved for broad comedy, or for heightened drama such as
the plays of the Restoration period. In everyday life we tend to
be pretty subtle when changing height.
It’s often valuable to see what happens if you try ‘doing the
opposite’. Let’s say that in rehearsal you’re perched on the arm
of a sofa in a scene with another actor who is standing. Your
characters are arguing. You feel the need to rise and face the
other actor, which would mean standing to match their height.
Try instead sliding down from the arm onto the seat of the sofa:
the resulting change in mood, driven perhaps by your character’s
desire to seem unthreatened, may form a more interesting and
truthful choice.
Exercises: Solo
1) When out shopping, move around with your height raised
above what is normal for you. Make a mental note of how
the change affects you. Note how your brain starts to
engage with the change: your mind is looking to justify it –
perhaps you start to feel more powerful, even a bit pompous.
Try doing the opposite. Note whether other people’s reac-
tions to you change at all.
2) Observe people’s use of height at a social gathering. Notice
unnecessary changes in height, and ask yourself what might
motivate them. Imitate them. Be imaginative!
3) Select a short audition monologue you know well – one in
which you are talking directly to someone else. Restage it,
subtly altering your height at points where it seems psycho-
logically appropriate. At times you may change height
because you feel in control; at other times, you change
height because you’re less confident. Changes in height
should be fluid, subtle and responsive. Ask an observer to
watch your revised performance: chances are, the invisible
onstage character you are addressing will become more
‘visible’ to your observer.
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acting characters
Exercises: Partnered
1) Think of a formal work situation in which people will often
consciously alter their height when meeting and talking.
Rehearse, and then perform, a short scene which shows
this. Find out how it feels if the heights are reversed.
2) Think of a social situation where, because of their confi-
dence levels, people may alter their height when meeting
and talking. Rehearse, and then perform a short scene
which shows this. Find out how it feels if the heights are
reversed.
Example: Natasha from Three Sisters
Read and rehearse the section of a scene below from Act One,
which follows moments after the previous scene (when we first
met Natasha). Pay close attention to how the psychological pres-
sure Natasha experiences as a result of feeling ridiculed, might
show itself through changed height:
[Loud laughter; NATASHA rushes out into the sitting-room,
followed by ANDREI]
ANDREI
Pay no attention to them! Wait ... stop, please. ...
NATASHA
I’m so ashamed ... I don’t know what’s the matter with me,
they’re all laughing at me. It wasn’t nice of me to leave the
table, but I can’t help it ... I can’t. [Covers her face with her
hands.]
ANDREI
Please, dear, don’t be upset. They’re only joking, they’re
kind people. My dear, darling Natasha, they’re all kind and
good people, and they love us both. Come to the window,
they can’t see us here ... [Looks round.]
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NATASHA
I’m just not used to company.
ANDREI
Oh you’re so young, so beautiful, so wonderful! My darling,
don’t be upset! Believe me, believe me ... I’m so happy, my
heart is full of love, of ecstasy ... They can’t see us! They
can’t! How I’ve fallen in love with you – Oh, I don’t know
anything. My dear, pure darling, be my wife! I love you, love
you as I’ve never loved before ... [They kiss.]
[Two officers come in and, seeing the lovers kiss, stop in aston-
ishment.]
Tool No. 6: Adjusting Openness
Openness describes the degree of exposure or concealment of
the front of the body. ‘Fully open’ would mean that your legs are
apart, your head is raised slightly to expose your neck, and your
arms are away from your torso, for example with your hands on
hips; or, if you’re seated, your hands may be joined behind your
head with fingers interlocked. ‘Fully closed’ would leave you
with your legs entwined, your head tilted down, and your arms
folded tightly across chest or stomach. The degree of openness is
one of the most influential bodily signs; you can make a strong
initial judgement on a person’s state of mind by looking at their
openness from some distance away.
Animals’ degree of openness tends to reveal how vulnerable
they feel to attack by hunters. The ultimate degree of conceal-
ment and self-protection – the favoured defence posture among
many animals – is the ‘foetal’ position. Others instinctively make
themselves as small and low as possible, using the ground as part
of their protective shield: think of a mouse caught out in the open.
Under intense physical threat humanimals may do either; signif-
icantly, they will also show a defensive physical response as a
result of psychological, and not just physical, threat.
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acting characters
So a humanimal’s degree of openness or concealment gives
real clues to his mental state. The posture adopted tends to
reflect a person’s degree of confidence, and their sense of status
relative to others present. Let’s start with the stereotypes. Picture
a poolside scene: a super-confident and well-muscled lifeguard is
chatting up (and being chatted up by) a shy bather, who is
wearing her new bikini for the first time. He’ll probably have his
hands on his hips, she’ll probably have her arms folded in front
of her. His legs will be apart in ‘on duty’ mode; hers probably
slightly crossed if standing, tightly entwined if she is sat. He is
exposing his body shape, suggesting that he is unconcerned
about threat; she is partially hiding hers, projecting her vulnera-
bility, inviting him, to follow the cliché, to protect her.
Of course it’s rarely as straightforward as that. Sophisticated
as we humanimals are, we tend to be aware of what potential
signals we’re giving out, so we throw in a few big distractions.
Time for a bit of role-reversal. Back to our couple at the pool-
side: let’s add a few new bits of information. He is a little uncon-
fident about his physique (not uncommon these days among
bodybuilders – the so-called Adonis syndrome). She knows she
looks fabulous in her new bikini. He finds her perceived super-
confidence a bit too much – he prefers to feel in control in this
developing relationship. She wants to know if he has the person-
ality to match the body; she is struggling to get conversation out
of him and is rapidly losing interest. He, lost for words, pretends
that he is being super-vigilant at the poolside in case of any acci-
dents. Both wish they could say something funny to lighten the
mood, but nothing appropriate is coming to mind.
How might this new information show itself in their relative
body postures? He, ‘on duty’ and on show, probably tries to
maintain a degree of openness – legs apart, head up – but folds
his arms over his chest to shore up his confidence (and make his
biceps look bigger!). Surprised at her lack of progress, she has
dropped her head slightly. Her legs are uncrossed and her hands
are on her hips, but she is starting to feel exposed. Just after he
has folded his arms she does the same, partially mirroring his
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posture (so-called postural echo). This feels instinctively more
comfortable, and gives one of them the confidence to risk a joke.
Contradictory signs – such as arms folded but legs apart – are
a common part of people’s interpersonal armoury: it throws the
other person ‘off the scent’ and prevents them from reading a
person’s true feelings. But we humanimals are cleverer still: we
commonly use inanimate objects to justify the degree of our
openness or concealment.
One final visit to the poolside. Things are not going too well,
and she is about to make her exit – unaware that he is too. Each
has one or two items: he has his lifeguard’s whistle and wears
sunglasses; she has a small shoulder bag, sunglasses resting on her
head, and a towel draped around her shoulders. Earlier in the
meeting she had lightly towel-dried her hair, requiring her to raise
her arms and expose her chest. Keen now for an exit she has
pulled the towel protectively around her shoulders. She has also
dropped her sunglasses down over her eyes. Using both hands he
adjusts his sunglasses on his head, giving him an opening-up
gesture which subtly increases his sense of confidence. He also
puts the whistle in his mouth, supposedly in reaction to a bit of
splashing going on in the pool, but in truth to excuse himself from
the effort of making further conversation. She fishes in her bag for
some loose change and, finding it, looks purposely in the direction
of the poolside bar. After a few moments, and with little more than
a nod and a smile from each of them, he toots briefly on his whistle
and moves towards the pool, while she moves off to the bar.
Acting tips
Most types of openness or protective behaviour will cause no
harm to your technical acting performance, though a really
closed posture is going to reduce both your vocal resonance and
your available breath. It’s worth getting really familiar with this
aspect of body language – it’s one of the most instinctive, so,
when used sensitively in a scene with another actor, it can really
help a scene to seem ‘real’. It’s common for two people to shift
postural openness in direct response to one another, and this
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acting characters
tends to be very fluid: if you’re tense onstage or on set, you run
the risk of being ‘left behind’ when your fellow actor shifts his
degree of openness or concealment. A shift in openness can also
offer an audience vital clues to your character’s attitude towards
a new arrival in the scene.
Exercises: Solo
1) Next time you find yourself under pressure in a public situa-
tion – at a party, for example – take note of your bodily open-
ness. If you find you have closed up in some way, try adopting
a clear open posture, e.g. hands on hips. Maintain this for
some time and see how it affects your own feelings. Note also
whether other people alter their behaviour towards you.
2) Choose a modern naturalistic monologue you are comfort-
able with, which you know well, and which is delivered to
an unseen onstage character. Restage it, using your full
knowledge of openness. Subtly use one or two appropriate
small props in your self-redirection.
Exercises: Partnered
1) Openness in a human animal gives clues to the character’s
mental state; the amount of openness can reveal a person’s
confidence, and their sense of relative status. There may be
hidden thoughts or feelings which ‘leak out’. Think of a
situation in which two people might meet. Using a scale of
one to ten, choose a level of confidence for each of you: one
is low, five is medium, ten is high. Create a ‘back story’ to
support your behaviour. Enter the set situation when you’re
ready, and behave as truthfully as you can. Stay aware of
your openness during the scene.
2) A person may use openness to manipulate the reactions of
others, e.g. pretending to be vulnerable in order to be
chatted up at a party by a ‘hunter’; pretending to be tough
in a dangerous neighbourhood.Think of a situation in which
this sort of need might arise when two people meet. Using
a scale of one to ten, choose a level of confidence. Create a
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‘back story’ to support your behaviour. Before the scene
begins, take on the character’s normal, ‘real’ openness.
Then adopt the ‘pretend openness’ which is designed to
manipulate the feelings and behaviour of the other person.
Enter the set situation when you’re ready. Concentrate on
staying aware of the mental conflict in maintaining the
‘adopted’ openness during the scene.
3) People often make subtle use of objects when interacting
with others. These can help boost confidence, or can hide
real feelings. Select some small items for possible use, e.g.
bag, newspaper, mobile phone, mirror, glasses. Prepare as
before, but use the items subtly during the scene to help
you become more open, or more concealed.
4) The degree of openness a person shows will be fluid and
changing, depending on who they are with and how they are
feeling. Openness reveals their sense of relative status.Think
of a social situation in which two people meet. Plan a
moment in your scene when something big changes the rela-
tive status between the two characters – e.g. a decision, or a
revelation. Explore during the scene how openness alters in
each character, before, during and after the ‘moment’. Try
running the scene as (a) strangers; (b) friends; (c) lovers.
Example: Natasha from Three Sisters
Read and rehearse the scene below from Act Two. Natasha,
bearing a message, finds Andrei. Consider how she might use her
talk of the cold (she seems to have banned fires in the house) as
an excuse for maintaining the ‘security blanket’ of a closed
posture. Perhaps when she mentions the entertainers she might
open up a little as her sense of having some control returns – and
again, as she plots to have Irina moved out of her room.
[Scene as before. It is 8 pm. Somebody is playing an accordian
outside in the street. There is no light. NATALIA IVANOVNA enters
in a dressing gown carrying a candle; she stops by the door which
leads into ANDREI’S room.]
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acting characters
NATASHA
What are you doing, Andrei? Are you reading? It’s nothing,
I just ...
[She opens another door, and looks in, then closes it]
No candles lit ...
ANDREI [Enters with book in hand]
What are you doing, Natasha?
NATASHA
I was looking to see if there’s any lights on. It’s Shrovetide,
and the servant is getting careless, I have to keep watch
constantly. When I came through the dining-room yester-
day at midnight, there was a candle still burning. I couldn’t
get her to say who lit it. [Puts down her candle] What’s the
time?
ANDREI [Looks at his watch]
Quarter past eight.
NATASHA
And Olga and Irina are still out. The poor things are still at
work. Olga at the staff meeting, Irina at her telegraph office
... [Sighs] I said to your sister this morning, ‘Irina, darling,
you must look after yourself.’ But she won’t listen. Did you
say quarter past eight? I’m afraid little Bobik is quite ill.
Why is he so cold? He was feverish yesterday, but to-day
he’s freezing ... I’m so worried ...
ANDREI
He’s all right, Natasha. The boy is fine.
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NATASHA
Still, I think we should check he’s eating properly. I’m so
worried. And the entertainers were to be here after nine;
it’s best they don’t come, Andrei.
ANDREI
Well – I don’t know. We did invite them.
NATASHA
This morning, when that little boy woke up and saw me he
suddenly smiled; he knew me. ‘Hello, Bobik!’ I said, ‘good
morning, darling.’ And he laughed. Children understand,
they understand very well. So I’ll tell them, Andrei dear, not
to let the musicians in.
ANDREI [Hesitatingly]
Surely that’s up to my sisters. This is their home.
NATASHA
I’ll tell them. They’re so kind ... [Going] I’ve ordered sour
milk for supper. The doctor says you must eat sour milk
and nothing else, or you’ll never lose weight. [Stops] Bobik
is so cold. I’m afraid his room is too cold for him. It would
be nice to put him into another room till the warm weather
comes. Irina’s room, for instance, is just right for a baby:
it’s dry and it gets the sun all day. I must tell her, she can
share Olga’s room. She’s not at home in the daytime, she
only sleeps here ... [A pause] Andrei, darling, why so silent?
ANDREI
I was just thinking ... there’s really nothing to say ...
NATASHA
Well ... there was something I wanted to tell you ... Oh, yes.
Ferapont has come from the Council, he wants to see you.
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acting characters
ANDREI [Yawns]
Call him here.
[NATASHA goes out]
Tool No. 7: Working on Eye Contact
The eyes are the mirror to the soul, someone once said. And the
eyes have it, when it comes to communication between people.
We use them to ‘read’ other people, and to signal (or disguise)
our own feelings and intentions.
What matters most is the direction, and the duration, of eye
contact between people. The extreme opposites would of course
be continuous eye contact, and no eye contact at all. Also of
interest is ‘flickered’ eye contact, when people look up briefly but
choose not to hold eye contact.
In the animal world, full eye contact from a hunter indicates high
status: ‘you look tasty’, the animal might be thinking. But high
status can also be claimed as a result of giving no eye contact, which
might be interpreted as, ‘you’re not worth my attention’. Full eye
contact from a creature which is hunted can also indicate readiness
to flee: ‘Is he still there?’. No eye contact from a hunted creature
can also mean submission: ‘I know you’re the boss.’ Flickered eye
contact – looking up briefly, but always looking away first – can
indicate acceptance of a lower status: ‘Hello and all that, but I’m
really no threat to you.’ (Horse-whisperers use this technique.)
With humanimals, most of the time it’s much the same. The
main difference is, once again, that we routinely manipulate our
behaviour for some hidden reason. One comic stereotype might
be the old-fashioned headmaster in assembly, steering laser-
beam eyes around the school hall in an attempt to spy potential
trouble-makers. Under his fierce stare the pupils remain stock-
still and resolutely refuse to catch his eye.
It’s important to keep in mind the simple idea of hunter/
hunted roles in the animal kingdom, as, so often, they find a
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parallel in human relationships. We humans still hunt, and are
hunted; it’s just that we no longer eat each other. Instead we
hunt for status, for positions in relationships which provide us
with a sense of comfort. And we do in this in a range of subtle,
sophisticated, and at times seemingly contradictory ways.
We are, from an early age, aware of the use and effects of eye
contact. But as we get older we become more sophisticated. A
group of four-year-olds would show active disinterest in the
company of a boring teacher, looking away, yawning, staring out
of the window. A bored secondary school pupil might feign
interest with occasional strong eye contact; a university student
trapped in a dull lecture might well apply himself with apparent
fervour to the task of note-taking.
Eye contact between people shows interest or respect (or a lack
of it). Full eye contact can mean either a high-status sense of your
being in control, or a low-status sense of you being controlled:
blinking reduces your sense of power and control. Looking away
first can show acceptance of lower status than that of the person
who is looking at you; or it can imply that you’re losing interest in
that person. If you want to be confident that you have ‘read’ the
meaning behind a person’s eye contact – especially if you’re
observing one of these ‘either/or’ situations – look for the tension
in the face and the body. A person who is most at ease with high-
status behaviour will make strong choices with their eye contact,
and will underpin this with a relaxed face and body.
Some interesting recent research explores how eye movement
relates to mental recall, such as remembering events. Broadly
speaking, if you’re ‘seeing’ images in your mind, your eyes look
upwards as if you are looking at the images on a raised screen in
front of you. If you’re recalling or hearing sounds, your eyes tend
to move to the side. And if you’re recalling or experiencing
strong feelings, your eyes tend to move downwards. I think it’s
interesting for actors to explore this. Try to catch yourself when
you are remembering things. And explore how the theory works
with spontaneous experience, too: I’ve noticed that when I’m
listening to someone on the phone, my eyes tend to move subtly
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acting characters
but quickly from side to side. I think this sort of awareness of the
subtleties of behaviour is really worth exploring; I know that some
teachers believe it can harm your spontaneity, but in my experi-
ence, once you’ve developed an ease with such knowledge, it will
simply make you a more resourceful, versatile and truthful actor.
Acting tips
How long would your character hold eye contact with another
character? Don’t worry about this in detail; there are too many
variables to make a technically ‘correct’ answer in any particular
circumstance. Just learn the theory, explore it in rehearsal, and
then trust your instincts in performance. Your character’s
attempts to achieve his objective – his ‘want’ at any particular
moment (see Section Six, ‘Inner Life’) – should keep your physi-
cal behaviour focused and appropriate.
Keep this in mind, though. Generally speaking, the better you
know someone, the less you feel the need to give them regular
eye contact. There’s less need for you to supply them with visual
signs, such as smiling and nodding, since you understand each
other well and are unlikely to offend one another. Also, you will
find yourself needing to look elsewhere in order to unearth the
more personal thoughts and feelings that friends discuss. It’s
difficult to form complicated thoughts, or indeed to recall
events, if you’re looking straight into someone’s eyes.
Exercises: Solo
1) Try altering your preferred use of eye contact for a day. If
you tend to look away first, hold strong eye contact instead.
Maintain this behaviour for some time and see how it
affects your own feelings. Note also whether other people
alter their behaviour towards you.
2) Choose a modern naturalistic monologue you’re comfort-
able with and know well; select one in which there is
another character in the scene, even though your audience
cannot see them. Restage the monologue, using your full
knowledge of the use of eye contact.
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Exercises: Partnered
1) Think of a work-related situation in which a professional
person may consciously alter their eye contact in relation to
a customer or client. You can use previous examples if you
wish, e.g. detective/suspect, counsellor/child. Devise a short
scene which shows this.
2) Think of a social situation in which two people, recent
acquaintances, meet, but one of them wants to hide their
real feelings. Devise the scene so that eye contact is manip-
ulated by that person, to throw the other ‘off the scent’.
3) Think of a situation in which two close friends are seated
facing outwards on a bench. Devise the scene so that the
friends’ level of eye contact reflects their level of familiarity.
Run the scene again with almost constant eye contact;
discuss the difference in the ‘feel’ of the relationship.
4) Practise chatting with your partner with differing degrees of
eye contact. Discuss after how it is that different levels of
eye contact affect your idea of what your partner is feeling
towards you.
Example: Natasha from Three Sisters
Read and rehearse this longer scene below from Act Two. For the
first time we see Natasha in the company of most of the men,
including VERSHININ, BARON TUZENBACH, SOLENI,
FEDOTIK (all army officers), and CHEBUTIKIN (an army
doctor). MASHA and IRINA are also present, along with
ANFISA, a servant.
This is a highly charged scene for Natasha; these important
people are guests in her house. Her husband is absent from the
room. If she is to compete with Masha and Irina for the attention
of the men, she may be tempted to call on her Personal power as
claimed through her beauty. Consider how she might use her eyes
to do this. Soleni’s snub will doubtless affect her confidence with
eye contact, though she may want to hide this.Though she speaks
little in the scene, her use of French to put down Masha at the
end suggests that she is still working hard to impress.
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acting characters
[A samovar is brought in; ANFISA attends to it; a little later
NATASHA enters and helps by the table; SOLENI arrives and, after
greetings, sits by the table.]
VERSHININ
What a wind!
MASHA
Yes. I’m sick of winter. I’ve already forgotten what
summer’s like.
IRINA
The cards are coming out, I see. We’re going to Moscow.
FEDOTIK
No, they’re not. Look, the eight was on the two of spades.
[Laughs] That means you won’t be going to Moscow.
CHEBUTIKIN [Reading paper]
Tsitsigar. Smallpox is raging there.
ANFISA [Coming up to MASHA]
Masha, have some tea, my dear. [To VERSHININ] Please have
some, sir ... excuse me, sir, but I’ve forgotten your name ...
MASHA
Bring some here, Nanny. I’m not going over there.
IRINA
Nanny!
ANFISA
Coming, coming!
NATASHA [To SOLENI]
Babies understand perfectly. I said ‘Good morning, Bobik;
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good morning, dear!’ And he looked at me in a special way.
You think it’s just the mother in me speaking; I assure you
that it’s not! He’s a wonderful child.
SOLENI
If he was my child I’d roast him on a frying-pan and eat him.
[Takes his tumbler into the drawing-room and sits in a corner.]
NATASHA [Covers her face in her hands]
Vulgar, ignorant man!
MASHA
Some lucky people don’t even notice whether it’s winter or
summer. I think that if I were in Moscow, I wouldn’t care
about the weather.
VERSHININ
A few days ago I was reading the prison diary of a French
minister. He’d been jailed on account of the Panama
scandal. With what joy, what delight, he writes of the birds
he can see through the prison windows, which he’d never
noticed when he was a minister. Now he’s free again, he
notices birds no more than he did before. When you go to
live in Moscow you’ll not notice it, either. There can be no
happiness for us, it’s just wishful thinking.
TUZENBACH [Picks up cardboard box]
Where are the pastries?
IRINA
Soleni has eaten them.
TUZENBACH
All of them?
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ANFISA [Serving tea]
There’s a letter for you, sir.
VERSHININ
For me? [Takes the letter] From my daughter. [Reads] Yes, of
course ... I have to go. Sorry, Masha. I shan’t have any tea.
[Stands up, agitated] Same old story ...
MASHA
What is it? If it’s not a secret?
VERSHININ [Quietly]
My wife has poisoned herself again. I must go. I’ll slip out
quietly. It’s all terribly unpleasant. [Kisses MASHA’S hand]
My dear, my splendid, good woman ... I’ll go this way ...
[Exits.]
ANFISA
Where’s he gone? I’ve brought his tea ... What a man.
MASHA [Angrily]
Be quiet! Stop fussing, I can’t get a moment’s peace ...
[Goes to the table with her cup] I’m tired of you, silly old
woman!
ANFISA
My dear! Why so angry!
ANDREI’S VOICE [offstage]
Anfisa!
ANFISA [Mocking]
Anfisa! He just sits there and ... [Exits.]
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MASHA [In the dining-room, by the table angrily]
Let me sit down! [Disturbs the cards on the table] Cards every-
where. Drink your tea.
IRINA
You’re in a foul mood, Masha.
MASHA
Well if I am, then don’t talk to me. Don’t come near me!
CHEBUTIKIN [laughing]
Don’t go near her, don’t go near her ...
MASHA
You’re sixty and you’re like a little boy, always up to some
damned nonsense.
NATASHA [Sighs]
Dear Masha, why use such expressions? With your good
looks you could be simply enchanting in good society, if it
wasn’t for your language. – Je vous prie, pardonnez moi,
Marie, mais vous avez des manières un peu grossières ...
TUZENBACH [Trying not to laugh]
Give me ... give me ... some cognac …
NATASHA
Il parait, que mon Bobik déjà ne dort pas, – he’s awake.
He’s not well to-day. I’ll go to him, excuse me ...
[Exits.]
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Tool No. 8: Adjusting Space
Space is really the odd one out. It’s not, after all, something you
actually do with your own body; it’s something around you which
you use, or decide not to use. What’s important is to understand
how you move within space when other people are nearby – how
much, or how little, physical space you claim compared to your
immediate neighbour.This is your personal space. Imagine it as a
flexible invisible bubble: people sense when they have pressed up
against your bubble, and you know when you’ve encroached on
someone else’s. People claim space through their bodily size and
movement, and through their attitude. So to understand space in
relation to bodies, you need to be familiar with the other four
characteristics of movement – tension, height, openness, and eye
contact. All four variables allow you to claim or abandon the
space which another person might want.
In the animal world, things tend to be pretty straightforward.
(I like the old joke. Q. Where does a crocodile sleep? A. Exactly
where it likes.) The degree of relative threat normally determines
claims on space: lions lounge in the open, spread over a large
area; sheep at night tend to huddle together.
Humanimals of course have to make things more complicated.
Use of space is more often a reflection of a person’s sense of status
relative to others; as a result we engage in daily tussles for space at
the breakfast table, on the road to work, in the office, in bed. It is
possible to claim a large space – and so a high status – through
formal or informal use of objects; picture the caricature of a
pompous managing director with a huge desk covering most of his
office, and his meek PA perched behind a tiny desk just outside the
office door. Or picture two strangers facing each other on a train,
a small shared table between them. The large-space-claimer uses
bodily openness, height, a relaxed posture, and confident eye
contact to stake their claim.This is backed up with assertive use of
props – his bag takes up the seat beside him, his can of drink is
placed at a point more than halfway across the small shared table,
and when he occasionally coughs into his hand he does so with his
head up. The small-space-claimer uses small and restricted body
70
the body
movement; his bag stays on his knee, and his drink stays firmly on
his ‘side’ of the table. When he sneezes he does so into his own
small space, turning his head down and towards the window.
These two characters are basically happy with their respective
claims on space. Where things get more interesting is when two
people disagree on allocation of space, or when circumstances
demand that the ‘rules’ be suspended.
The first time I ask a new group of students to form a circle,
I’m always left with enough space either side of me for at least
one, possibly two people. This is the space allocated to me out of
respect, or out of shyness. By week two the space between each
of us is the same.
Famous people are often allocated a large space, whether they
like it or not. A friend described finding a famous composer
marooned alone in the middle of a room at a party, complaining
distressedly that ‘no-one is talking to me!’.Years ago at an awards
ceremony in London I was getting ready in my shared dressing
room when we were visited by singer Freddie Mercury. He had
two ‘minders’ with him, but there may as well have been ten: the
space we allocated to this shy icon seemed to push the rest of us
right up against the walls.
Next time you’re in a lift with other people, take a few
moments to observe the way people claim space around them.
Interesting things happen in lifts, where available space is small
and unalterable.You don’t know, as you wait for the lift doors to
open, who will already be in there, or how many people will be
inside. You don’t know those people’s sense of status which will
determine their ‘claim’ on the limited space available. You don’t
know whether the people already in there are strangers or
acquaintances.When the doors open, you have to react instantly,
claiming space according to who is already there; most people
therefore claim a small space, at least to begin with. People who
claim a large space can seem quite rude very quickly, simply by
‘invading’ the unspoken neutral space allocated by others in the
lift. In a crowded lift you would need the hide of a rhinoceros to
demand a large space.
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acting characters
People react unconsciously to other people’s invisible ‘bubbles’,
as if evading the pressing skin of the other person’s space. The
head and the body of the lower-status person will be turned
slightly away from the power-holder. People’s sense of awareness
of the ‘size’ of another person’s space – their ‘bubble’ – can be read
partly through the direction they choose to face. When there’s no
available space – on a crowded London tube train, for example
– passengers sardined together into a carriage tend nevertheless
to face in different directions, so that the ‘challenge’ of eye
contact is kept to a minimum.
It’s different, though, with friends; they are generally happy to
share space. Sometimes people who are not friends remain
insensitive to other people’s demands on space; such ‘space
invaders’ can cause much discomfort to others. This can be due
to personality, but also to culture. This was amusingly explored
in a TV commercial for a UK bank recently, when an English-
man was shown recoiling from the ‘up close’ behaviour of locals
in Mexico. Once I was mistaken for a local in Spain by an
English couple in a bar: when I sat a good six feet away from
them, the woman muttered darkly that they were being
‘encroached upon’.
Acting tips
An awareness of issues to do with the use of space between
people is potentially invaluable for an actor who wants to repli-
cate naturalistic human behaviour. This is one area in which you
can dare to trust your instincts moment-by-moment. Unless
lighting or camera angles dictate otherwise, your use of space
between you and your fellow actors ought at least subtly to
change from performance to performance. Moving within space
is something we do in reaction, as well as when taking action; so
if you really are psychologically ‘tuned in’ to your fellow actors,
there will be a fluid and changing use of space in response to
your interaction with them. Once again, muscular tension brought
on by a mental state of unreadiness is the most inhibiting factor
in relation to the effective use of space onstage; you have to be
72
the body
able to focus on, and listen hard to, your fellow actors before
your reactions can be genuine and spontaneous. Get rid of your
script as early as possible in rehearsal. Practise listening.
One interesting rehearsal technique requires the actors in a
scene to make choices about use of the space between them.
Briefly, you run a scene and at any moment you have to do one
of three things: keep still; move closer to another actor; or move
away from another actor. At the rehearsal stage this activity is
intended to promote discovery, to allow each actor to externalise
his feelings towards other characters; movement should there-
fore be decisive and significant. As rehearsals progress, any such
movement may become more subtle or may even disappear: a
character may be left with a psychological desire to move away
from another character, but may be inhibited from doing so by
some important factor such as a desire to save face, or to hide his
real feelings. What remains, then, is a hidden and appropriate
sense of tension.
Exercises: Solo
1) Next time you find yourself in a confined space with others
– on a train, for example, or in a lift – try to visualise the
proportions of your personal space ‘bubble’. Then visualise
it as being much bigger. Allow yourself some bodily move-
ment which expresses the sense that you have a larger
personal space. Maintain this for some time and see how it
affects your own feelings. Note also whether other people
alter their behaviour towards you.
2) Choose a modern naturalistic monologue you’re comfort-
able with and know well. Select one in which there is
another character in the scene, even though your audience
cannot see them. Restage the monologue, using your full
knowledge of space issues in relation to other people.
Exercises: Partnered
1) Think of a situation in which two strangers might meet.
Using a scale of one to ten, choose a level of confidence for
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acting characters
each of you: low, medium, or high. Create a ‘back story’ to
support your behaviour. Enter the set situation when you’re
ready, and behave as truthfully as you can within the situa-
tion. As an actor, concentrate on staying aware of your use
of space during the scene. Run the scene again – but this
time the characters are friends.
2) People sometimes use objects to help them claim space in
relation to others. Select some small items for possible use;
the ones you used in the Openness exercises will do.
Prepare a scene which requires that there should be a table
between characters. During the scene, make ‘strategic’ use
of your items to help you either to claim more space, or to
withdraw into a smaller space.
3) Think of a social situation in which two people might meet.
Plan a moment in your scene at which something big
changes the relative status between the two characters – a
decision, perhaps, or a revelation. Explore during the scene
how each character’s claim on space alters before, during
and after the ‘moment’. Try running the scene as (a)
strangers; (b) friends; (c) lovers.
4) Run a scene in a lift in which both characters are comfort-
able with the relative space between them. Re-run the scene
with one of the characters showing insensitivity towards the
other character’s spatial claim. If you have more than two
actors, add additional characters to explore how new
arrivals complicate things.
Example: Natasha from Three Sisters
Read and rehearse this scene below, again from Act Two. This is
a difficult scene for Natasha. Guests are still in her house, and
her husband is here too. Yet she seems to have made arrange-
ments with her lover Protopopov for him to call and take her out.
As she juggles these matters, and then confronts Irina with her
decision to move her into Olga’s room, Natasha’s use of space
could well suggest her state of mind:
74
the body
[NATASHA enters with a candle; she looks in through one door,
then through another, and goes past the door leading to her
husband’s room.]
NATASHA
There’s Andrei. Let him go on reading. Sorry, Vassili
Vassilevitch, I didn’t know you were here; I’m not dressed.
SOLENI
It’s all the same to me. Goodnight! [Exit.]
NATASHA
You’re so tired, my poor dear girl! [Kisses IRINA] If you only
went to bed earlier.
IRINA
Is Bobik asleep?
NATASHA
Yes, but he’s restless. By the way, dear, I wanted to tell you,
but either you were out, or I was busy ... I think Bobik’s
nursery is cold and damp. And your room would be so right
for the child. My dear, do move over to Olga’s for a bit!
IRINA [Not understanding]
Where?
[The bells of a troika are heard as it drives up to the house.]
NATASHA
You and Olga can share a room, for the time being, and
Bobik can have yours. He’s such a darling; to-day I said to
him, ‘Bobik, you’re mine! Mine!’ And he looked at me with
his dear little eyes. [A bell rings] It must be Olga. She’s very
late. [The maid enters and whispers to NATASHA] Protopopov?
What an odd man. Protopopov’s come and wants me to go
75
acting characters
for a ride with him in his troika. [Laughs] How funny men are
... [A bell rings] Somebody’s at the door. I suppose I could
pop out for a quick ride … [To the maid] Say I shan’t be long.
[Bell rings] The bell again, it must be Olga.
[Exits.]
76
section 4: the voice
Voice is quite simply the sound you make. Speech is the use of
lips and tongue to shape, and to control, that sound into words.
In this Section we’re concerned mainly with voice, and how it
supports the meaning of speech.
Actors use their voices to ensure effective communication to an
audience, and to express things which may be hidden ‘behind’
the spoken words in a script.
We will consider four new Tools which expand your range as an
expressive performer. Tool Number 9 – Adjusting Loudness –
takes a common-sense look at one of the key elements of effec-
tive onstage performance. Tool Number 10 – Adjusting Inflection
– explores how changes in the musical notes in your voice can
carry emotion, and can radically alter the meaning of words or
phrases. Tool Number 11 – Adjusting Note – examines how a
character’s ‘true root note’ can alter audience perceptions, and
develops the link between note and inflection. Tool Number 12 –
Adjusting Tone – assesses how the ‘hardness’ or ‘softness’ of a
character’s tone of voice can carry important associations.
As before, we’ll look first at what each term means; we’ll look
behind the term to see what knowledge is required to be able to
change each variable; we’ll consider the psychological reasons
why the relevant characteristic will vary from person to person;
and I’ll end with some suggested exercises to help you improve
your control over each vocal characteristic.
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acting characters
Just as two people’s physical behaviour can be very different, so
too can there be huge variations in two people’s vocal behav-
iour. Just as parts of your own body language may be ‘wrong’ for
a character you’re playing, so too can aspects of your own vocal
behaviour be inappropriate. It’s important that you develop an
understanding of the characteristics of your own voice and
speech, so that you can use that knowledge in practice as an
actor.
What then are the key ‘variables’ in voice? The word LINT
captures the four key changeables: Loudness, Inflection, Note,
and Tone.
Ideally you should use a dictaphone to help you work through
the vocal sections of this book. Record and replay your efforts as
often as possible: you should get used to hearing even the
subtlest differences in your own voice. With practice and a good
‘ear’ you will be amazed at how vocally versatile you can become.
Tool No. 9: Adjusting Loudness
Your own natural speaking voice will be loud, quiet, or some-
where in between. As an actor you need to develop the control
and sensitivity required to vary volume. The basic reason is
obvious: the audience member sitting high up in a theatre’s
‘gods’ must be able to hear all the words spoken by you, every bit
as clearly as the person sat in the front row of the stalls.
In a moment we’ll look at the techniques of volume control.
First, though, let’s put the issue of vocal volume into context in
everyday life. Vocal volume in the real world can reveal impor-
tant psychological things about a person. Let’s start with the
clichés: a confident person is always loud; a shy person is always
quiet. Like most clichés, there’s a lot of truth in this. Confidence
– real, unforced confidence – may well be expressed in part
through a loud, clear voice.The speaker is secure in his opinions
and is happy for anyone to hear them. A shy person lacks confi-
dence in their ability to communicate well. They may doubt the
78
the voice
appropriateness of their own opinion. In an effort to limit
damage to their confidence, they will tend to keep their voice at
a quiet level.
So far so obvious. But, as with physical communication,
things get rather more interesting when the speaker tries to
disguise their feelings. Someone who normally thinks of them-
selves as being shy, may find themselves in a situation where they
must seem confident: making a speech at a wedding, for example.
So they do their best to be vocally louder. If they’re sufficiently
in control, then they do a good job of disguising their shyness,
and manage to sound confident. If the stress of the situation
takes over, they may actually speak far too loudly. Consider also
the super-confident person who is attracted to a shy person at a
party. The former responds to the need to avoid bulldozing the
latter by adopting a quieter, more intimate vocal level.
How, then, do you gain control over vocal volume? As with so
many other things, you learn the theory, you explore the pro-
cesses, and you practise, practise, practise. And as with so many
other things in acting, the basis of good vocal volume control is
relaxation – the ability to relax physically and mentally.
Here in brief is the process which leads to you making a
sound:
• You take a breath.
• You breathe out.
• As you breathe out, some of the air passes over the vocal
cords in your throat.
• You allow the air to vibrate the vocal cords.
• The sound you produce is your voice.
So far, so straightforward. So what do actors do to give them
greater control over vocal volume?
Mainly, they learn to relax under pressure. A relaxed body is
a body freed of muscular tension. It’s no coincidence that vocal
exercises are often done with the student laid flat on the floor:
this position requires virtually no muscle tension.
79
acting characters
There are real benefits to being able to stay physically relaxed
during performance.You can take a bigger breath.You have greater
control over the outward flow of breath. Resonance, which helps
to amplify your voice, will be enhanced. What, then, is resonance?
Resonance occurs when sound is amplified through effective
use of resonators. What are resonators? Resonators are spaces:
chambers of varying size, dotted about your upper body. Your
mouth is a resonator; so is your nose; so is your throat; so are
your lungs. So, too, are your sinuses – the tiny chambers which
are peppered around your skull. Each of these resonators has the
potential to help amplify your voice. Picture two guitars: one is a
solid-bodied electric guitar, the other is a hollow-bodied acoustic
guitar. If you strum the strings on the electric guitar, without
plugging it into an amplifier, you might well struggle to hear the
resulting sound from across a room. If you do the same thing to
the acoustic guitar, the sound resonates in the hollow body of the
guitar, amplifying the sound hugely. The hollow body of the
guitar is the guitar’s resonator.
How can we be sure that it is the empty space which is respons-
ible for amplifying the guitar’s sound? If you fill the hollow body
of the guitar with some sort of material – cotton-wool, say, or
cloth – the reduction in the availability of empty space in the hol-
low body causes a massive reduction in resonance, which in turn
leads to a significant reduction in volume. It’s the same with the
human body. If you’re very tense, you start to restrict and reduce
your resonators; so you get less amplification through resonance.
If you have a bad cold, and your nose and sinuses are blocked,
you will notice a marked reduction in volume. This deadening
effect results from the blocked resonators being inactive.
There’s already a great deal of help and advice available to
support the actor who wants to improve his vocal projection (see
Further Reading), so, with apologies, I’m going to move on.
Acting tips
There’s not too much benefit in analysing the psychology behind
levels of vocal volume, for the simple reason that an actor
80
the voice
onstage must clearly maintain a significant level of volume what-
ever his character’s given circumstances. The need to be audible
must override any notions of ‘realism’; this is a simple golden
rule, a ‘given’. An audience may sometimes forgive less-than-
brilliant acting, but if you speak too quietly and deny them
access to the story, they’ll not forgive that.
In the recorded media, if the director can’t hear all of your
words, you’ll be stopped and there will be a retake. The sound
recordist will try to take account of your vocal volume, but you
may be asked speak up, or even reduce your vocal volume. This
is harder than it sounds if you’re acting an emotional scene.
Always remember, though, that you’re working in a commercial
environment – someone in the hierarchy has deemed that the
words matter. Just do your best; it’s unlikely that people will
notice your private awkwardness.
Exercises: Solo
Here is a list of exercises to do in sequence, to help you to
achieve greater vocal volume. Make sure that your body is in a
relaxed position before you start each exercise.
1) Lie on the floor, face up, and relax your body fully. Breathe
regularly through your nose, imagining, as you breathe in,
that your navel is being drawn towards the ceiling. (This
helps to ensure that your breathing makes use of your
diaphragm muscle, which is located just above your navel.)
Let your teeth be parted but keep your lips together. As you
breathe out, allow the air to pass over your vocal cords, so
that you make a sound. Don’t try to form any words, just
make a simple sound: you are gently activating the vocal
cords, and amplifying the sound through your natural
resonators. The sound you make, a gentle ‘mmmm’ sound,
should be roughly on the same note, but, because you’re
not singing, the note will glide downwards a little as you
run out of breath.You should feel a slight tickling sensation
on your lips.
81
acting characters
2) This is a continuation of the first exercise.This time, as you
breathe out, after three seconds let your jaw drop so that
your mouth falls open: visualise the sound as being released
from confinement. The sound you make will be a gentle
‘mmmaaah’. You’ll notice, with some practice, that, with
relatively little effort from you, and without any attempt to
shout, your voice is surprisingly loud. Check for tension;
your mouth and throat are large resonators which will work
more effectively as such if they are open and relaxed.Yawn,
noticing the open position of the throat and the back of
your mouth. Aim for a relaxed version of this position when
you’re breathing out. Practise this exercise daily; you’ll
become familiar with the power of resonance, and you will
also get used to being relaxed when you create sound.
3) Do as you did before in 2), but also practise controlling the
flow of breath more carefully. Count in your head how
many seconds you take to breathe in, then to breathe out.
In normal speech, we tend to take a very short breath in,
and then we control the outward flow of air over a period
of a few seconds. Be aware that when you work on verse or
classical texts, you can’t always take a breath when you feel
like it; you may need to wait until the end of a long line.
Over time, train yourself to be able to take a big breath,
which you release in a controlled way, through a relaxed
body, making good use of your resonators.
4) Repeat the exercises above, but do them standing up. Stand
with your feet slightly apart, your weight evenly balanced,
arms by your sides.You need few muscles to stay in this posi-
tion – mainly just the muscles around your ankles and your
knees. Keep everything else as relaxed as possible. The chal-
lenge is to maintain strong amplification through use of your
resonators, even though some muscles need to be tensed.
Note just how few muscle groups are required to stand like
this. Later, when you’re in a social situation, notice how
many more muscles you use – frowning, tensing the jaw,
pressing thumb against fingers, clawing feet, tilting neck at an
82
the voice
angle, placing weight mainly on one hip; these are some of
the common areas of added tension. As an actor you need to
develop an awareness of which muscles are tense, so that you
can relax those which are tensed unnecessarily.
Tool No. 10: Adjusting Inflection
Inflection describes the way in which we move through different
notes when using our voices.
As you’ll see, we do tend to think of inflection as a character-
istic of speech, rather than of voice. But I’m going to cheat and
introduce it here in the section on Voice, not just because you
can actually alter inflection without using language, but because
we often do. And when we do, vocal inflection is often inextri-
cably linked to our spontaneous emotions. A yawn, for example,
requires you to make a simple non-speech sound, which typically
slides from a higher note to a lower one. And a yawn can carry
considerable meaning in terms of a person’s attitude and state of
mind: try a few pretend yawns now, and widen the range of notes
which you pass through as you yawn. Think also of the ‘mmm’
sound we make when something tastes good: the voice slides,
without use of words, from one note to another.The vocal sound
which accompanies any intense sensual or psychological experi-
ence – pain, laughter, pleasure – each can easily be voiced using
a non-speech-based change in inflection.
To consider how we alter inflection, it’s probably easiest to
think, initially, about singing: a song with only one note would be
extremely dull, so the singer varies the notes during the song.
Think of the old rhyming song ‘Three Blind Mice’. It begins with
three simple notes: a high note for ‘three’, a lower note for ‘blind’,
and a lower note still for ‘mice’. Fast-forward now to the section
which runs, ‘They all run after the farmer’s wife’. Sing it. (If you’re
reading this on a train, hum it. If you’re reading this on a train, and
you want more space around you, sing it.) This time, the melody
uses four notes. The singer follows a pattern which, during that
83
acting characters
particular line, uses most of those notes more than once. If the
singer can read music, he may use a score, which will guide him in
knowing when a note is repeated. For a singer, a musical score is
in essence a guide to inflection: it tells the singer whether the next
note to be sung is higher, lower, or the same as the previous note.
In speech, vocal inflection helps the listener to follow meaning.
At some point in your life you’ll have come across the person
who speaks in a monotonous voice, meaning they speak virtually
on a single note. Have a go now at speaking on a single note.
(This should get you even more space on the train.)
Not only would this be boring to listen to, it would be very
difficult for the listener to pick out which parts of the spoken
sentence are most important. So the speaker – even, if you listen
carefully, the boring speaker – takes the trouble to vary the notes.
Take the last three words from that sentence: ‘vary the notes’.
Good advice, that. Keep your voice interesting by varying the
notes.
Now look at that last sentence – the one you’ve just read which
begins, ‘Keep your voice...’. Imagine you’re about to make a
speech, and this sentence is the first line of your speech. Decide
for yourself which are the most important words in the sentence
(pick a maximum of four). Here is the sentence again, in isolation:
• Keep your voice interesting by varying the notes.
One interpretation would give the following capitalized words
the most importance:
• KEEP your voice INTERESTING by VARYING the
NOTES.
Read the sentence out loud, stressing the words which are in
capitals. In order to do this, you will have to vary the notes. (The
only other choice you have is to make the words in capitals
louder, which sounds odd.Try it.) Most likely, you will have used
a slightly higher note for the words in capitals. As I said earlier,
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the voice
it’s a good idea to have a dictaphone with you when you’re doing
exercises like this. If you have one, use it now, repeating the
sentence and accentuating the words which need stressing. Play
it back, and listen for the (possibly subtle) changes in use of note.
Listening to a speaker is not, of course, the same as listening
to a singer. A singer follows notes which a composer has previ-
ously scored; even the duration for which the singer should hold
a note will be predetermined. The speaker, however, is providing
a spontaneous score, and the resulting score reveals things about
the speaker’s feelings and attitudes.
There is another, fairly obvious way in which the inflection of
a speaker differs from the inflection of a singer. The singer has a
fixed range of notes to choose from. If the singer fails to reach a
note cleanly, the listener notices (and probably winces). The
speaker has a range of notes in his repertoire limited only by his
vocal range.There’s no such thing as being ‘off key’ for a speaker:
pretty well anything goes, as long as the chosen inflection
supports the speaker’s meaning.
Another difference: the speaker habitually slides between notes,
whereas the singer generally does not. Go back to the line from
‘Three Blind Mice’ which runs: ‘They all run after the farmer’s
wife’. Sing the line again. Now sing it a second time, but this time
allow yourself to slide from one note to another (you’ll probably
sound drunk!).Take it a little further. Start to think of the sentence
as being a spoken sentence: you’re telling the story to a child, and
the child asks: ‘So what happens to the mice next?’ You reply,
‘They all run after the farmer’s wife.’ When you say the line, keep
in your mind the ‘sung’ version. Speak the line, keeping approxi-
mately to the notes in the ‘sung’ version, but try to make the
sentence work as a genuine, spoken reply to the child’s question.
When you do this, you are consciously using vocal inflection.
Once you become aware of vocal inflection in speech, you can
start to use inflection consciously. Actors need to be conscious of,
and able to control, inflection. Much of the time, an actor’s aware-
ness of his use of inflection simply helps him to avoid sounding
dull. But some jobs require an actor to be extremely competent in
85
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